Reynald Temarii
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Reynald Temarii | |
|---|---|
| Minister for Youth and Sports | |
| In office 1997–2004 | |
| President | Gaston Flosse |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 2 June 1967 |
| Party | Tahoera'a Huiraatira |
Ariitu Reynald Temarii (born 2 June 1967) is a former French Polynesian footballer, sports administrator, politician, and Cabinet Minister who served in the cabinet of Gaston Flosse. From 2004 to 2010 he was president of the Oceania Football Confederation, and from 2007 to 2010 a vice-president of FIFA. He is the father of politician Nahema Temarii.[2]
Temarii began his football career at A.S. Jeunes Tahitiens, where they clinched a Tahiti First Division title in 1987.[1] He left for France to continue his football career at FC Nantes between 1988 and 1990. He returned to French Polynesia in the early 1990s, where he played for A.S. Vénus and A.S. Pirae, winning the Tahitian top-flight title with both teams. In 1995, he was the captain of the Tahiti team that won the gold medal in the 1995 South Pacific Games.
Between 1997 and 2004 he was the youth and sports minister in the Tahoera'a Huiraatira government of Gaston Flosse, before being elected president of the Oceania Football Confederation. He was re-elected in 2007, also being selected as a FIFA Vice President.[3] In late 2004 he was appointed chair of the board of Tahiti Nui TV. The appointment was rescinded less than a month later,[4] and Temarii subsequently left the Tahoera'a and launched his own political party, Porinetia Ora.[5][6]